Remember when we talked about Ways to Disguise a TV? Well I jumped on the bandwagon and got to work helping to disguise our TV in the Bedroom with a small gallery wall of frames. I think it helps to distract from the big black boxiness of the TV hanging on the wall. But let’s go back to the beginning and see what we started with. 
We hung the TV nice and high on the wall so that when you’re laying in the bed snuggling up to watch a movie the TV would be perfect height. It’s an awesome spot for TV watching but it left a giant gap between the top of the dresser and the bottom of the television not to mention nothing much else was going on around it. This picture above was taken before we added the new curtains, pillows, restyled the bookcases and all kinds of other fun things I’m not remembering right now.
On my last trip to Ikea I bought a bunch of Ribba Frames in different sizes in both white and wood tone. I liked the simple frame style and large mats and the fact that they’re not outrageously expensive. I would definitely recommend them for anyone looking to create their own gallery wall.
Once I got the frames home I traced the sizes out onto a roll of craft paper I keep around for just such emergencies and cut them out. You could use anything you have on hand including newspaper, wrapping paper, or even the paper inside the frames would work out well. My method was basically to tape a few pieces up on the wall at a time and stepped back to look and see how things were coming along.
After what seemed like an eternity of taping skootching, un-taping and moving I got to a place I was felling pretty good about the general arrangement.
I left it alone for a few days and lived with the paper scraps on the wall to make sure I still liked the arrangement. After I was sure they were in the right spot I got to work hanging some of the frames.
The only thing odder to me then living with paper scraps taped to the wall is living with a husband that doesn’t even flinch anymore when #1. we have scraps of brown paper taped to the wall with blue painters tape for an extended period of time and #2. doesn’t even ask why I am taking numerous pics of said paper scraps.
Anyway where was I? Oh yeah! Putting up the first frame was probably the most nerve racking part. I hate hate hanging pictures only to find that I need to move it a tad to the left or right, it’s off center, up too high down or down too low. Let’s just say even with me marking out where I wanted the frames and carefully marking where the picture hangers should go onto the paper by measuring onto the piece of paper marking an X and then nailing directly over the top of the X there’s still a few extra holes where I had to nudge something one way or another.
You can see how I even has a couple of smaller frames that fit perfectly around the thermostat to help disguise that as well. So happy I decided to buy those as a last minute decision in case I needed them. The final placement changed just a bit from the paper template on the wall. I still may add a few so they trail down the dresser on the right side. Or maybe a nice canvas work work there as well?
As for what we put in the frames? Well there are a bunch of family photos from last year when we spent some time at the beach as well as on the lake at home.
The only one I had printed at Wal-Mart due to the size is the large one of Bryan and Nikolas on the boat. It was around $8.00 for the poster size and it came out really nicely.
Overall we’re really loving how the frames have helped to balance out the TV. The room is really coming along now, I can’t wait to get it all done. As for what’s next, at the moment there’s a great lamp debate going on in my mind. I swear I’ll be back and forth to the store 10 times before I decided. Hopefully (fingers and toes crossed) I get to working on reupholstering those chairs. Now that will be a big job.
So what have you all been up to? Any lighting debates going on in your home?
or at a number of other places too. 
